Fire retardant fabric



July 12, 1955 R. A. BLACK ET AL 2,712,834 FIRE RETARDANT FABRIC Filed May 6, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTO 5. Jo'Jsp/v /=i F025 055E714 Eur/r BY QMMW July 12, 1955 R. A. BLACK ET AL 2,712,834

FIRE RETARDANT FABRIC Filed May 6, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 v l I l "I, MW'F ilfl LII I u I IN V EN T 0R. c/ossp/y F. Pays. BY ose/P7 r4. 544:4

United States Patent 2,712,834 FIRE RETARDANT FABRIC Robert A. Black, Florham Park, N. J., and Joseph F. Rolls, Riverside, Conn., assignors to Chicopee Mills,

c., a corporation of New York Application May 6, 1952, Serial No. 286,270 12 Claims. (Cl. 139-426) This invention relates retardant properties.

Materials exemplified by saran, a copolymer comprising a major portion of vinylidene chloride and vinyl chloride or acrylonitrile and in which the vinyl chloride or acrylonitrile is present to the extent of at least five per cent have self fire extinguishing properties resulting, it is believed, from the fact that when burned, fire extinguishing gases thought to be chlorine or hydrogen chloride or both are generated which act to extinguish fire in the material itself once the exterior source of fire which initiated the burning in the material has ceased to act upon it.

Textile fabrics made wholly of such material, whether woven from monofilament, continuous filament, yarn spun from staple on the Wool or the worsted system or made of unwoven staples of such material do not have as desirable properties with respect to characteristics such as drape and hand as do textile fabrics made from other synthetic materials as for example those containing major portions of acrylonitrile or polyesters such as nylon.

A typical fabric containing acrylonitrile is one made from stretched textile fibers composed of a vinyl resin resulting from the conjoint polymerization of a vinyl halide such as chloride with acrylonitrile and containing between about forty five per cent (45%) and about eighty per cent (80%) of the halide in the polymer and which is sold by Carbide and Carbon Chemicals Corp. as dynel. Another one contains fibers made from major portions of acrylonitrile copolymers or interpolymers, copolymerized with such as vinyl acetate and sold by Chemstrand, Inc. under the trademark Acrylan. Still another of the acrylonitrile type fabrics is one containing fibers made from substantially pure polyacrylonitrile and sold by E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. under the trademark Orlon.

Typical of the polyester type fabrics are those made from superpolyamides having recurring amide groups such as nylon itself and from fibers of a condensation product of dimethyl terephthalate and a polyhydric alcohol such as ethylene glycol and which Pont de Nemours and Co. under the trademark Dacron.

Fabrics made of the above-mentioned materials will not meet certain specifications for fire retardant properties of treated textile fabrics currently used in the testing of such fabrics, particularly the specification for the vertical flame resistance test forming part of U. S. Navy specification CCCC525 dated January 4, 1952, for fire resistant cloth.

It has been discovered however, that by combining saran fibers with fibers of other materials such as those of the types mentioned by way of example, in sufiicient quantity to enable the self fire extinguishing properties of the saran to be effective over the entire fabric, but not in excess of that which would introduce into the fabric certain undesirable properties attributable to saran, a textile fabric will result having characteristics of hand to textile materials having fire 1 major portions of vinyl compounds is sold by E. I. du

and drape approaching those of such other materials alone and at the same time possessing fire retardant properties enhanced to a substantial degree over those inherently possessed by textile fabrics made from fibers of such other materials alone.

The saran fibers may be incorporated in the fabric in numerous ways depending on the type and quality of the fabric desired. Thus, in the case of woven fabric, the filling threads in whole or in part may be made of saran in the form of yarn spun on the wool or on the worsted system from saran staple or in the form of threads made from continuous filaments or in the form of monofilaments. The Warp threads may be made of the other material or materials and a form of thread used according to the specific qualities desired in the end product. Saran also may be used as the warp ends in whole or in part and in one form of thread or another although if spun yarn is desired, manufacturing procedures probably will dictate the use of a yarn spun on the worsted system to provide necessary stren Saran in desired amounts may be incorporated with staple of the other material into yarn and such yarn used in whole or in part as the warp or fill or both. Saran staple in desired proportion also may be incorporated with staple of the other material and such staple mixture used in the manufacture of non-woven fabric of structure similar to the fabric described in U. S. Patent No. 2,039,312.

in practicing the invention, it is preferred that the saran type material be combined with a material containing acrylonitrile and a vinyl chloride such as that used in the manufacture of the fabric of dynel previously referred to. Anexample of such fabric is as follows:

Example Material:

Warp threads-copolymer of acrylonitrile and vinyl chloride yarn 16/2 (cotton count). Fill threadscopolymer of vinylidene chloride and vinyl chloride or acrylonitrile (spun saran) 1.2 run. Thread count:

Warp 50 per in. Fill 24 per in.

This fabric contained between 10 and by weight saran with the remainder the copolymer of acrylonitrile and vinyl chloride yarn. Unlike a material of similar structure made all of a copolymer of acrylonitrile and vinyl chloride yarn, it passed vertical flame resistance tests carried out according to U. S. Navy procedure. No change in flame resistance occurs after laundering or dry cleaning. The material possessed good band and drape. Fig. l is a view showing a cross woven fabric made in accordance with the invention.

A fabric made in accordance with the teachings of U. S. Patent No. 2,039,312 but using between 10 to 60% by weight of saran staple and the remainder a staple made from a copolymer of acrylonitrile and vinyl chloride is considered within the purview of the invention. Fig. 2 is a view of a nonwoven fabric illustrating this embodiment of the invention.

The invention may also be practiced with the material used in the manufacture of those fabrics sold under the trademarks Acrylan and Orlon and to a lesser degree with materials such as nylon and those used in the manufacture of the fabric sold under the trademark Dacron.

It is natural, of course, when the material used in the fabric with the saran type material is one different from the copolymer of acrylonitrile and vinyl chloride (dynel) that the proportion of saran type material in relation to such other material will vary in order to produce a fabric having equivalent or at least satisfactory fire retarding properties. The desired proportion however, may readily be, obtained by increasing .or decreasing thenurnber per inch of fill threads,- or threads that are saran type material as compared with, those that are of, the other material-according, as it is. desired, to increase or decrease the fire retardant properties ofthe fabric. With respect to nonwoven fabric similar variations'may he made. with respect to. the v other staple in the product to obtain the preferred balance between flame retardant properties and those other characteristics, i. e,, hand, drape, stretchretc. which it is desired to impartto. the fabric by the presence. of such other staple in the-product What, the'prefcrrcd balance should be for, any given character of staple mixed with saran type staple will be readily ascertainable by those skilled in the. art I V While the, invention has been described with reference to variousrreferred embodiments, many other embodiments are included Within its spirit. It, is to be limited therefore, only by he. scope. of. the appended claims.

What is claimed is: l

1. A, fire retardant, textile fabric.- comprising a material selected, from the group consist-ing of polyacrylonitrile, a copolymer of acrylonitrile and polymer'of acrylonitrile and, vinyl acetate, and between ten per cent (10%) and sixty per cent 60%) by weight 7 of a' copolymer having a major portion of vinylidene chloride and vinyl chloride or acrylonitrile tov the extent of at least five per cent (5%), whereby material selected I from said group imparts qualities of good hand and drape to the fabric and said last-mentioned copolyrner is sulficient'to substantially reducethe. ability of the first-mentioned material to support combustion.

2. A fire retardant'woven fabric according to claim 1.

3. A fire retardant non-woven fabric according to claim 1.

4. A fire retardant fabric according to claim 2, in which the fill threads comprise the copolymer of vinylidene chloride with. vinyl chloride oracrylonitrile.

ratio by weight of saran type staple to a vinyl halide and a coiii) 5. A fire retardant textile fabric comprising a material selected from the group consisting'of superpolyarni'des and condensation products of dimethyl terephthalate and a polyhydric alcohol, and between ten per cent (10%) and sixty per cent (60%) by weight of a copolymer having a major portion of vinylidene chloride and vinyl chloride or acrylonitrile to the extent of at least five per cent (5 whereby material selected from said group imparts qualities of good hand and drape to the fabric and said last-mentioned. copolymer is sufficient to substantially reduce the ability of the first-mentioned material to support combustion.

6. A; fire retardant woven fabric 7. A fire retardant non-woven claim 5. Y

3. A firc retardant fabric according to claim 6, in which the fill-threads comprise the copolymer of vinyl idene chloride, with vinyl: chloride or acrylonitrile.

9. A fire retardant fabric according to claim 3., wherein bothmaterials. are in the form of staplesif). A fire retardant fabric according to claim 9, wherein both materials are. in the form of staples.

ll. A fire retardant fabric according to, claim 2 wherein the, fill comprises yarn spun on the'wool system from staples of said last-mentioned copolyrner and: the warp comprises yarn made from material selected from said group.

12. A fire retardant fabric according to claim 6, wherein the fill comprises yarn spun on the wool system from staples of said last-mentioned copolymer and the warp comprises yarn made from material selected from said group. i

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATESPATENTS according to claim 5.

fabric according to 

1. A FIRE RETARDANT TEXTILE FABRIC COMPRISING A MATERIAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF POLYACRYLONITRILE, A COPOLYMER OF ACRYLONITRILE AND A VINYL HALIDE AND A COPOLYMER OF ACRYLONITRILE AND VINYL ACETATE, AND BETWEEN TEN PER CENT (10%) AND SIXTY PER CENT (60%) BY WEIGHT OF A COPOLYMER HAVING A MAJOR PORTION OF VINYLIDENE CHLORIDE AND VINYL CHLORIDE OR ACRYLONITRILE TO THE EXTENT OF AT LEAST FIVE PER CENT (5%), WHEREBY MATERIAL SELECTED FROM SAID GROUP IMPARTS QUALITIES OF GOOD HAND AND DRAPE TO THE FABRIC AND SAID LAST-MENTIONED COPOLYMER IS SUFFICIENT TO SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCE THE ABILITY OF THE FIRST-MENTIONED MATERIAL TO SUPPORT COMBUSTION. 